Bitcoin Blockchain Splits in Rare Two-Miner Block Race

A rare event occurred in the Bitcoin network on March 24, 2026, when two miners, Antpool and Foundry USA, found a block at nearly the same time. This created a brief split in the blockchain, with each miner producing their own version of block 941,881 within 12 seconds of each other.

Foundry's version eventually won out by accumulating more proof-of-work and forcing the network to reorganize around it. As a result, Antpool's block was orphaned, along with ViaBTC's attempt to build on top of it.

The event highlighted the complexities of Bitcoin mining, where miners compete to find valid blocks in a decentralized system with no central authority.

While two-block reorgs are rare, close calls occur frequently. In the three days leading up to this event, 40 out of 435 consecutive-block intervals landed within 60 seconds of each other, including one pair just 5 seconds apart.